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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. spring — a coil
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — in sport
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bulb — for light
  9. fine — high quality
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bulb — for light
  13. cell — in biology
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. branch — a division
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. cell — a phone
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. spring — of water
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. fine — all right
  24. spring — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com